How I'd like to pick a president -- and 7 things

No other show besides Sex and the City has been able to capture my interest and devotion since 90210.

Here's 7 Reasons Why American Idol has kept my Tuesday and Wednesday nights from winter to spring filled for the last six years -- and continues to do so in this Seventh Season.

1. Ryan Seacrest. I love Ryan. In the land of TV hosts where it's truly hit or miss, he just gets it. He knows how to move the storyline along, he comes across as charismatic and caring and he pulls very few punches to the fellow judges as in calling out Randy yawning before the show started last night. To me, Ryan makes the show interesting between performances, which is something I haven't found happening on Dancing with the Stars.

2. The judges: Change the judges on American Idol and the show is doomed. Randy offers a realistic standpoint and keeps it real while Paula always offers something nice and optimistic, making supporters of all of them feel better. And, Simon brings drama. (We almost always agree with Simon's assessments.)

3. The directing: Watching Dancing with the Stars Monday night -- a quick fix for a night without Idol -- and my feet shake with boredom. I just want the next couple to dance. If I'm going to NOT to anything, it has to be for really good TV. That just wasn't and I don't think I saw more than three couples dance. It made me appreciate all that the directors and the producers of American Idol put into their show. Not a second passes when I'm not amused or touched or impressed. I do not wish the time to pass. I stay up late to watch it all. I actually skip writing for three nights in a row to tune in. For a girl who hardly turns the TV on all day, that is saying a lot.

4. The dream-factor: One of my biggest jobs as a journalist has been to seek out voices not typically heard and realize that so many great voices in America have gone undiscovered is amazing to me. It just goes to show how easily we pass by talented people because, perhaps, they aren't packaged how we want them to be. It also just goes to show that with a really hard work -- and some repackaging -- dreams can come true.

5. The music: I've never been one for heavy television or movies, especially close to bedtime. Music-tv is a great solution to a long, stressful day. It's a great way to unwind. To just be. I'd like to think that one day our Liana -- a naturally good singer already -- will grace that stage with her own.

6. Be the judge: Let's face it. How can you not think you are the talent scout? I find it hard to believe that anyone can tune in just once and never return because it's so easy to think you know who's going to win. Truthfully, we've been predicting winners in our house for years now. Dan called Kelly Clarkson. I called (sadly) Ruben Studdard. It's pretty clear who will be the winner this year as well, but voters can pull some surprises.

7. For Democracy: I've said for a few seasons now that we should hold an American Idol-like contest for the American presidency. This may seem like a joke, but this idea would be a solution for many of the great big reasons voting has become so ridiculous in our country.

First of all, all Americans regardless of location or line of transportation can get to a phone these days. Second of all, Americans are so misinformed and misguided as to what the ACTUAL issues are because the media only talk about the Melodrama of the day and the debates -- also led by the news-hungry media are on cable and not everyone has cable.

Thirdly, this idea would pull a great number of candidates that aren't currently fitting into that mold Americans currently think a president must fit into. Let's face it we're all a bit dulled by the same-old, same-old, which is why Obama is doing so well. By forcing candidates to put on their best game on each and every issue -- no campaign money necessary so save that for the important stuff like health care -- perhaps a real conversation about what really matters would begin.

Of course, I'm not asking for presidential candidates to sing ... silly. To give speeches, make decisions on live TV in front of millions, etc.

Well, that's my soapbox for today.


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I tried repressing this post, but ...

If not now, when?

And, if not her, who?

These are the questions that have me Fuming. I'm on fire with anger.

When will be the best time to elect a woman president? Who could be a better president? And what will be the arguments against her?

Too bitchy? Too smart? Too aggressive? Too wimpy? Too emotional? Too what?

What?

Why not Hillary?

Why not?

Because she was married to Bill? Because she is strong? Because she is political. Controversial. Because she is smarter, more diplomatic and more globally respected than the current president?

Or, is it because she is a woman?

Why not her?

More importantly, who better to take on the highly paid men of Capitol Hill?

Who?

Because I can only think of one other woman who is strong enough, smart enough and willing to put their families and careers aside to take on the men of Washington and that is Nancy Pelosi, who right now is pretty busy in her new role. And, she, too is viewed as too Everything.

Aren't we all?

I'm too bossy. Too pushy. Too this and too that.

Politics intrigue me. They really do. I love watching Obama speak; he's a spin doctor, a Rhetoric man after my own heart. He speaks of great change. Change. We want change. "It's not about black or white. It's not about democrat or republican," he's said more than once.

These are the things I want to hear and he is saying them, he is singing them, he is preaching them from his podium day after day.

Well, what is it about then?

It's about bouncing back from a world of shame. It's about reviving our down-turned economy. It's about giving back American rights and freedoms. And, it's about restoring faith in our nation, again.

Sure, he can do this, and do it well. But, just about anyone could do a better job compared to our current president.

But, real change ... real, honest to goodness change, for me, is giving a woman -- a deliriously more-than-qualified, Yale graduate, fighter for human rights, intelligent WOMAN -- a chance.

Change, for me, means putting a woman, a mother, and a wife in that Oval Office instead of a man.

And, she is ready and waiting with all the power, experience, knowledge of public policy and the heart to serve this great country with every ounce of her being.

But, not now, no. Not Her. Gawd, no, not her.

So then ... who?


****

And, since I am no poet and since I am a mother, rising, I want to share this with you. If you won't listen to me, how about listening to Maya Angelou as printed in The Guardian Observer.

State Package for Hillary Clinton

You may write me down in history

With your bitter, twisted lies,

You may tread me in the very dirt

But still, like dust, I'll rise.

This is not the first time you have seen Hillary Clinton seemingly at her wits' end, but she has always risen, always risen, don't forget she has always risen, much to the dismay of her adversaries and the delight of her friends.

Hillary Clinton will not give up on you and all she asks of you is that you do not give up on her.

There is a world of difference between being a woman and being an old female. If you're born a girl, grow up, and live long enough, you can become an old female. But to become a woman is a serious matter. A woman takes responsibility for the time she takes up and the space she occupies. Hillary Clinton is a woman. She has been there and done that and has still risen. She is in this race for the long haul. She intends to make a difference in our country. Hillary Clinton intends to help our country to be what it can become.

She declares she wants to see more smiles in the family, more courtesies between men and women, more honesty in the marketplace. She is the prayer of every woman and man who longs for fair play, healthy families, good schools, and a balanced economy.

She means to rise.

Don't give up on Hillary. In fact, if you help her to rise, you will rise with her and help her make this country the wonderful, wonderful place where every man and every woman can live freely without sanctimonious piety and without crippling fear.

Rise, Hillary.

Rise.

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